December 24, 2009 - The Nine of Wands (Candlesticks)

"What do I need to know today for my heart's health and happiness, and how do I get there sooner, as opposed to later?"

There is a bit of impatience in me lately, to get to the heart of things, to make the changes, to move on, not surprising really, given what the year brought me. Of course, when you decide on the no nonsense approach, the fast track to where you need to be, expect punches won't be pulled. There are going to be more battles. What comes to mind is Churchill's speech about the Normandy invasion, that it's not the beginning of the end, "But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." God, I hope so. I want to see an end to this. I want peace. I want my equanimity. It does seem though, there will be a price to that achievement.

In the Jane Austen Tarot, the suit of wands is represented by candlesticks -- passion, creativity and initiative. Wands/

Candlesticks correspond to the element of Fire, from the slightest spark, to the greatest conflagration, and all the states between. The Nine of Candlesticks depicts Frederica Vernon, the daughter of Lady Susan ( the one Jane Austen Novel I haven't read, although I did once try). Lady Susan is a master manipulator, duplicitous, maybe even evil. She is trying to force her daughter into a loveless marriage and has forbidden her contact with anyone who might help. Frederica, panicked and desperate, summons her courage and pleads her case to one of her mother's suitors, a man she has feelings for, but also a man she can trust, a good man. This act of courage is ultimately rewarded. The man she confides in, Reginald de Courcy, takes her part and asks Lady Susan to give her daughter more time. That time becomes critical, allowing Reginald de Courcy to fall in love with Frederica and Lady Susan's true nature to be revealed.

When the Nine of Candlesticks comes up in a reading, courage and action are required. The situation may feel desperate. You may feel overpowered and outgunned. And yet, there can be triumph "if you dare to act with the courage of your convictions." So where do I need to be courageous? And what courage is required? To speak, or to stay silent? To fight for what I want, what I believe in, what I know? Or to leave it be, to see it as it truly is, to know that's done is done, to turn my back, to move on? I know what you're thinking. Ask for clarification. I would, but these days the small still voice of my intuition is silent and the tarot, well it speaks but I do not always clearly hear it, do not always like what I hear.

So, I guess for now I'll watch and wait and when courage is called for, I will be courageous, not because victory is assured, but because it isn't.